Manufacturing & The Economy

An update of key elements of a 2012 report on the impact of federal regulations on the manufacturing sector finds that the problems continue to persist and have increased in 2013.

NERA Economic Consulting’s update of a report commissioned by Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI) shows that manufacturing regulatory costs increased an average of 7.6% per year since 1998 compared with average growth of 0.4% for manufacturing output.

Further, the analysis found that since 1981, the federal government has promulgated 2,302 manufacturing-related regulations—up from 2,187 in 2012 and an average of just under 1.5 regulations per week for 30 years. With 270 of these considered “major” regulations (those determined to have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more), this means about 90% of the regulations targeting manufacturers do not undergo a cost-benefit analysis.